Two New Federal Statutes Signed Into Law On Monday
The President signed S. 98 and S. 1020 into law on 11 May 2026, directing the FCC to implement vetting procedures for universal service applicants and authorising FERC to extend construction deadlines for covered hydropower projects by six years.
On Monday, 11 May 2026, the President signed two distinct pieces of legislation into law, actions confirmed through official briefings issued by the White House. The legislative agenda for the day focused on infrastructure regulation, specifically targeting the governance of rural telecommunications and the timeline for energy development projects.
The first measure, designated as S. 98 and titled the Rural Broadband Protection Act of 2025, mandates a structural change within the Federal Communications Commission. Under the terms of the act, the FCC is now required to initiate a rulemaking proceeding to establish a formal vetting process. This new protocol will apply to all applicants seeking funding under the high-cost universal service program for the deployment of broadband-capable networks.
While the legislation establishes the requirement for a vetting mechanism, the specific criteria or operational mechanisms for this process remain undefined in the current text. The mandate directs the commission to initiate the necessary rulemaking, but the detailed framework for how applicants will be assessed has not been elaborated upon in the official statement released by the White House.
Concurrent with the broadband legislation, the President signed S. 1020, which addresses the regulatory timeline for covered hydropower projects. This act authorises the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend the deadline for commencing construction on these projects by an additional six years. The extension applies specifically to the start of construction phases for projects already covered under existing regulatory frameworks.
These signing actions reflect a continued federal focus on the administration of rural infrastructure and energy regulation. The White House briefings confirm that these measures are separate from previous legislative activity, such as the amendments to the FISA Amendments Act signed on 30 April 2026, which involved distinct security and intelligence authorities.
The implementation of these statutes places new procedural obligations on the FCC regarding the allocation of universal service funds, while simultaneously providing a temporal extension for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to manage hydropower development schedules.